A. J. Green (basketball)

AJ Green
Green with the Northern Iowa Panthers
No. 20 – Milwaukee Bucks
PositionShooting guard
LeagueNBA
Personal information
Born (1999-09-27) September 27, 1999 (age 25)
Cedar Falls, Iowa, U.S.
Listed height6 ft 4 in (1.93 m)
Listed weight190 lb (86 kg)
Career information
High schoolCedar Falls (Cedar Falls, Iowa)
CollegeNorthern Iowa (2018–2022)
NBA draft2022: undrafted
Playing career2022–present
Career history
2022–presentMilwaukee Bucks
2022–2023; 2024→Wisconsin Herd
Career highlights and awards
  • 2× MVC Player of the Year (2020, 2022)
  • 2× First-team All-MVC (2020, 2022)
  • Third-team All-MVC (2019)
  • MVC Freshman of the Year (2019)
Stats at NBA.com Edit this at Wikidata
Stats at Basketball Reference Edit this at Wikidata

AJ Green (born September 27, 1999) is an American professional basketball player for the Milwaukee Bucks of the National Basketball Association (NBA). He played college basketball for the Northern Iowa Panthers.

Early life

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Green attended Holmes Junior High School, where he first decided he wanted to play college basketball.[1] He played for Cedar Falls High School on the basketball team as well as the Iowa Barnstormers in AAU play.[2] As a senior, he averaged 26 points per game and became Cedar Falls' all-time leading scorer. He led the team to a state championship.[3]

Recruiting

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Green was a consensus four-star recruit and was considered the No. 78 player in the 2018 class by ESPN. On August 11, 2017, he committed to play college basketball for Northern Iowa, where his father was a member of the coaching staff. Green became the highest-rated player to ever commit to Northern Iowa and the program's first four-star recruit. He chose the Panthers over offers from Iowa State, Minnesota and Nebraska, among other major programs.[3]

US college sports recruiting information for high school athletes
Name Hometown High school / college Height Weight Commit date
A. J. Green
PG 		Cedar Falls, IA Cedar Falls (IA) 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m) 165 lb (75 kg) Aug 11, 2017 
Recruiting star ratings: Rivals:4/5 stars   247Sports:4/5 stars    ESPN:4/5 stars   ESPN grade: 84
Overall recruiting rankings:   Rivals: 94  247Sports: 80  ESPN: 78
  • Note: In many cases, Scout, Rivals, 247Sports, and ESPN may conflict in their listings of height and weight.
  • In these cases, the average was taken. ESPN grades are on a 100-point scale.

Sources:

  • "Northern Iowa 2018 Basketball Commitments". Rivals.com. Retrieved March 25, 2021.
  • "2018 Northern Iowa Panthers Recruiting Class". ESPN.com. Retrieved March 25, 2021.
  • "2018 Team Ranking". Rivals.com. Retrieved March 25, 2021.

College career

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As a freshman, Green averaged 15 points per game.[1] However, he struggled with turnovers, with 77 assists to 94 turnovers.[4] Green was named Missouri Valley Conference Freshman of the Year, becoming the first Northern Iowa player to receive the honor since Seth Tuttle in 2012, as well as Third Team All-MVC.[5] On January 4, 2020, Green scored a career-high 35 points in a 69–64 win over Bradley.[6] He had 34 points on February 8, in a 83–73 win over Drake.[7] On February 12, Green scored 27 points in a 71–63 win over Illinois State and surpassed the 1,000-point threshold.[8] At the conclusion of the regular season, Green was named MVC Player of the Year.[9] He averaged 19.7 points and 3.0 assists per game as a sophomore.[10] Following the season, Green declared for the 2020 NBA draft.[11] However, on July 30, 2020, he withdrew from the draft and decided to return to Northern Iowa for his junior season.[12]

On December 13, 2020, Panthers head coach Ben Jacobson announced that Green would undergo hip surgery and miss the remainder of the 2020–21 season. He only appeared in 3 games, averaging 22.3 points, 5.7 rebounds and 2.7 assists per game.[13] The following season, Green returned and averaged 18.8 points, 3.7 rebounds, and 2.5 assists per game, culminating in his second selection as MVC Player of the Year.[14] On April 20, 2022, Green entered the transfer portal while also declaring for the 2022 NBA draft and maintaining his college eligibility.[15] However, on June 1, 2022, he announced he would remain in the draft and forego his remaining eligibility.[16]

Professional career

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After going undrafted in the 2022 NBA draft, Green signed a two-way contract with the Milwaukee Bucks.[17] Green joined the Bucks' 2022 NBA Summer League roster.[18] In his Summer League debut, Green scored fourteen points in a 94–90 win against the Brooklyn Nets.[19]

On July 7, 2023, Green signed a standard contract with the Bucks.[20] On February 9, 2024, Green scored a career-high 27 points during a 125–109 loss to the Minnesota Timberwolves.[21]

Career statistics

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Legend
  GP Games played   GS  Games started  MPG  Minutes per game
 FG%  Field goal percentage  3P%  3-point field goal percentage  FT%  Free throw percentage
 RPG  Rebounds per game  APG  Assists per game  SPG  Steals per game
 BPG  Blocks per game  PPG  Points per game  Bold  Career high

NBA

[edit]

Regular season

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Year Team GP GS MPG FG% 3P% FT% RPG APG SPG BPG PPG
2022–23 Milwaukee 35 1 9.9 .424 .419 1.000 1.3 .6 .2 .0 4.4
2023–24 Milwaukee 56 0 11.0 .423 .408 .895 1.1 .5 .2 .1 4.5
Career 91 1 10.5 .424 .412 .913 1.2 .6 .2 .0 4.5

Playoffs

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Year Team GP GS MPG FG% 3P% FT% RPG APG SPG BPG PPG
2024 Milwaukee 6 0 11.2 .375 .182 1.000 1.5 .3 .0 .0 2.8
Career 6 0 11.2 .375 .182 1.000 1.5 .3 .0 .0 2.8

College

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Year Team GP GS MPG FG% 3P% FT% RPG APG SPG BPG PPG
2018–19 Northern Iowa 34 34 29.9 .410 .348 .864 3.0 2.3 .6 .1 15.0
2019–20 Northern Iowa 31 31 34.8 .416 .391 .917 3.0 3.0 .7 .0 19.7
2020–21 Northern Iowa 3 3 36.3 .464 .407 .667 5.7 2.7 1.3 .7 22.3
2021–22 Northern Iowa 31 31 36.4 .410 .388 .915 3.7 2.5 .8 .0 18.8
Career 99 99 33.7 .414 .378 .900 3.3 2.6 .7 .1 17.9

Personal life

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Green's father, Kyle Green, is an associate head basketball coach for Iowa State. He was previously an assistant coach and later associate head coach for Northern Iowa. Kyle played NCAA Division III basketball for Hamline University before spending one season professionally in Denmark, where he also began his coaching career.[1] Green's mother, Michele, played basketball for Hamline and is a chiropractor. Green's younger sister, Emerson, played basketball for Cedar Falls High School and is now playing at Northern Iowa.[22]

References

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  1. ^ a b c Potter, Jacob (November 21, 2019). "Father-son bond– A.J. Green's dream to play under his dad". The Northern Iowan. Retrieved February 7, 2020.
  2. ^ Southard, Dargan (July 13, 2017). "Inside top-100 guard AJ Green's unique recruiting process". The Des Moines Register. Retrieved February 15, 2020.
  3. ^ a b Southard, Dargan (October 17, 2018). "AJ Green ready to handle hype, expectations ahead of freshman season". The Des Moines Register. Retrieved February 7, 2020.
  4. ^ Petaros, Nick (October 18, 2019). "UNI basketball: Battle-tested Panthers must embrace the fight". Waterloo-Cedar Falls Courier. Retrieved February 15, 2020.
  5. ^ Southard, Dargan (March 5, 2019). "UNI basketball: AJ Green named Missouri Valley Conference freshman of the year". The Des Moines Register. Retrieved February 15, 2020.
  6. ^ Southard, Dargan (January 17, 2020). "'Appreciate what he's doing': UNI's AJ Green showcasing offensive prowess rarely seen in MVC". The Des Moines Register. Retrieved February 15, 2020.
  7. ^ Petaros, Nick (February 11, 2020). "Green approaches 1,000-point milestone". Waterloo-Cedar Falls Courier. Retrieved February 15, 2020.
  8. ^ Petaros, Nick (February 12, 2020). "Northern Iowa's A.J. Green scores 1,000th point in win over Illinois State". Sioux City Journal. Retrieved February 15, 2020.
  9. ^ Coleman, Rick (March 3, 2020). "UNI's AJ Green wins MVC Player of the year". KWWL. Retrieved March 4, 2020.
  10. ^ Gleeson, Scott (March 2, 2020). "NCAA men's tournament primer: Everything you need to know to prepare for March Madness". USA Today. Retrieved April 3, 2020.
  11. ^ Southard, Dargan (April 25, 2020). "UNI basketball: AJ Green declares for 2020 NBA Draft, leaves door open for college return". Des Moines Register. Retrieved May 1, 2020.
  12. ^ "AJ Green Withdraws From 2020 NBA Draft". UNIPanthers.com. July 30, 2020. Retrieved January 2, 2021.
  13. ^ Bain, Matthew (December 13, 2020). "UNI point guard AJ Green will undergo season-ending hip surgery". Des Moines Register. Retrieved January 2, 2021.
  14. ^ "AJ Green of UNI Headlines 2022 MVC MBB All-Conference Teams" (Press release). Missouri Valley Conference. March 1, 2022. Retrieved March 1, 2022.
  15. ^ Pisani, Hart (April 20, 2022). "AJ Green declares for NBA Draft, enters portal". The Waterloo-Cedar Falls Courier.
  16. ^ Bair, Cole (June 1, 2022). "UNI standout AJ Green to remain in 2022 NBA Draft". The Gazette. Retrieved June 1, 2022.
  17. ^ "Milwaukee Bucks Sign AJ Green to a Two-Way Contract". NBA.com. July 1, 2022. Retrieved July 1, 2022.
  18. ^ "Milwaukee Bucks 2022 NBA2K23 Summer League Roster | NBA.com". NBA.com. Retrieved July 14, 2022.
  19. ^ "Brooklyn Nets vs Milwaukee Bucks Jul 8, 2022 Box Scores | NBA.com". NBA.com. Retrieved July 14, 2022.
  20. ^ "Milwaukee Bucks Re-Sign AJ Green". NBA.com. July 7, 2023. Retrieved August 30, 2023.
  21. ^ "Former UNI Panther AJ Green scores NBA Career High 27 points for Milwaukee Bucks". KWWL. February 9, 2024. Retrieved May 1, 2024.
  22. ^ Bair, Cole (December 31, 2019). "UNI's AJ Green has basketball in his blood". The Gazette. Retrieved February 7, 2020.
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